Editors' Notebook

OMAHA (DTN) -- Midwest farmers are getting busy.

I see it in my Twitter feed and Facebook account via photos of fields being cut and quick notes about yields and moisture levels.

I see it in the soybean and corn fields I drive by around my home county of Sarpy in Nebraska. Fields full of dried corn or soybean plants are empty the next morning. Tractors can be spotted late, lighting the night as the crop is gathered and moved to (hopefully) suitable storage space.

I see it in my email box, where I receive fewer and fewer reports from DTN readers about what's going on in their areas because they are OUT THERE making it go on.

If idle hands are the devil's workshop, farm country is safe from evil this time of year. Still, a few producers found a moment to share with me and I'd like to share their comments with you.

Pete Bardole of Jefferson, Iowa, reports precipitation has slowed things down, but things are looking up.

"We received 2.5 to 3 inches of rain on Oct. 1 and things were wet before that," he wrote. "As of Oct. 6, we have 60 acres of soybeans harvested. There is crop coming out of the field as of Oct. 6 and the weather man is promising us several days of dry weather. Our first field of beans was average -- about 50 bushels an acre. Hoping better yields of later varieties."

Phil Carter, of New Era, Mich., is knee deep in apple harvest, but found time to do some elbow rubbing with government officials who have so much influence on his business.

"It was a happy Monday in west-central Michigan. Our 2.5-plus inches of rain (which we really didn't need) came to an end Sunday, so we got back in the apple harvest mode. Empires were finished today (Monday) and they are grading for the fresh cut premium program (think McDonalds apple dippers) but require a spray of Retain (slows growth while maintaining skin pressure necessary for slicing, at a cost of $100 per acre) and a USDA GAP audit ($500-$800). But crunching the numbers made economic sense. Our bi-monthly legislative breakfast featured our U.S. congressman in attendance who got his ear bent on the EPA's waters of the United States ruling and we discussed road funding with our state legislators. We're lucky to have a state senator and representative who get what agriculture is all about."

Dave Tollefson, of Starbuck, Minn., reported his early planted soybeans are yielding better than he expected.

"I have taken out about one-third of my beans; the earlier planted ones on the higher ground. They yielded 10 bushels more per acre than I had expected, so I hope the later-planted ones also exceed expectations.

"A lot of beans are coming out in the area and most farmers are happy with the yields. No corn has been taken out, but some guys that fill Harvestores with shelled corn may soon get at that, as they want around 25% moisture. Days like today (Monday) are pretty good for drying down, with temps in the 60s, low humidity and 20-plus mile per hour winds from the west.

"This morning was also the first frost of the season for us, with a temperature of 32 degrees at 7 a.m.

"Sugar beet farmers in the area are also busy, hauling quite a few miles to piling stations in other counties."

Kenneth Zahm of Marne, Mich., only had time for a quick note. "A neighbor of ours chopped 100 acres of corn for silage," he wrote. "The crop insurance adjuster put the yield at 65 bushels per acre."

If you'd like to join our email group of reader/reporters, send me a note at cheri.zagurski@dtn.com. And remember to be careful out there!

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